Table tent

ABSTRACT

A tent with at least one pole giving structure to a canopy, a fabric of the canopy attached to the at least one pole at at least one point, and a sealable hatch disposed within the fabric near a top of the canopy, operative releasing insects from the tent wherein the tent is configured to be placed on a horizontal surface.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. provisionalapplication No. 63/260,121, filed Aug. 10, 2021, the contents of whichare herein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to tents, and more particularly, to a tentfor use on a table or another horizontal surface.

Flies, insects, and debris outdoors may land on food. This may result inbringing disease to food kept outside on a table. Existing solutionsprovide covers for food, but often bugs find a way under the cover andbecome trapped with the food. These existing covers lack an option for abug or another insect to escape once trapped. These products, therefore,become a bug trap where the bug stays in the safety of the tent andcontaminates food and beverages therein.

As can be seen, there is a need for a device that covers food to preventfood contamination and includes a means to release a trapped insect.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the present invention, a tent comprising at least onepole operative to give structure to a canopy, a fabric of the canopyattached to at least one pole at at least one point, and a sealablehatch disposed within the fabric near a top of the canopy, operativereleasing insects from the tent wherein the tent is configured to beplaced on a horizontal surface.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with reference to the followingdrawings, description, and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a tent according to an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view thereof;

FIG. 3 is an exploded view thereof;

FIG. 4 is a section view taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 2 ;

FIG. 5 is a section view taken on line 5-5 of FIG. 1 ; and

FIG. 6 is a section view, similar to FIG. 5 , with a first flap and asecond flap of the tent open.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplatedmodes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. Thedescription is not to be taken in a limiting sense but is made merelyfor the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention,since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claimswith reference to the drawings.

A general overview of the various features of the invention will beprovided, with a detailed description following. Broadly, the inventionprovides a tent. The tent may be constructed and arranged to bepositioned on a horizontal surface, such as a table. The tent may coverand protect food on the table. In some embodiments, the tent may beconfigured to fully cover a tabletop such as a park bench tabletop ofapproximately 6′×3′. In use, a user may place food or beverages on ahorizontal surface and may position the tent to cover the surface.

In some embodiments, the tent may include one or more doors or flapsconfigured to function as doors. The doors may be sealable. These doorsmay be any suitable size, such as approximately 27″×18″.

The tent may be made of any suitable material, such as a fabricsufficient to form an enclosure. Poles may be utilized to give shape orstructure to the tent. The fabric or material may be placed around thepoles sufficiently to form the enclosure. In some embodiments, a singlepole may be used. The pole or poles may attach a structure formed by thepoles to the enclosure at at least one point. The pole or poles may bepositioned in a variety of ways, such as forming a rounded dome, cube,cuboid, or pyramid for the enclosure.

In some embodiments, the fabric or material may include sleeves toaffix, ensnare, or connect the poles to a fixed location or fixedlocations on the fabric or material. The sleeve may be affixed to thefabric or material. The pole may slide through the sleeve to hold thefabric or material to the pole. The sleeves may comprise gromets whichreduce damage and deterioration to the sleeves. A first gromet may be ona first end of the sleeve, and a second gromet may be on a second end ofthe sleeve.

Some embodiments of the invention may contain pole pockets. The polepockets may be a pocket on the fabric or material, forming an enclosureor pocket to insert an end of the pole. Pole pockets may be at eachcorner of the tent.

Some embodiments of the invention contain fasteners to fasten the tentto a horizontal surface such as a table. Such fasteners may be attachedto or be part of the fabric or material used to form the enclosure ofthe tent. The fasteners may be at each corner of the tent. The fastenersmay be a buckle, hook and loop closures, a string, rope, or any othersuitable material to fasten the tent to a horizontal surface.

The door or doors of the tent may be sealed by any suitable closure,such as a zipper, a latch, or buttons. In some embodiments, the door ordoors may include a magnetic closure to help seal the door or doors whenclosed. In other embodiments, the door or doors may be sealed by a hookand loop closure.

The tent may also include a top hatch, or fly escape, for occasionswherein a fly or bug may enter the tent. The hatch may be disposed inthe fabric or enclosure and may be a flap. A fly or bug may be permittedto escape upon opening of the top hatch. The hatch to be used as a bugor fly escape may be sealed by any suitable mechanism or by a means forsealing the hatch to the enclosure. In some embodiments, the hatch mayinclude magnetic closures to help seal the hatch closed. In otherembodiments, the hatch may be sealable or sealed by hook and loopclosures such as Velcro™ or by a zipper. The hatch may also be sealed bybuttons, buckles, clasps, or latches. The hatch may be approximately2″×4″.

The top hatch may provide a fly or insect with an escape. If the fly orinsect makes it in through a door panel, the user may just open thehatch to let the insect out to prevent the tent interior from becoming afly trap, as they fly trap holds the fly and enables the fly tocontaminate the food.

A magnetic closure may seal the hatch, so flies, bugs, and debris areprevented from entering the interior of the tent. The mechanism to sealthe hatch also helps keep the hatch closed in the event of a slightdraft or breeze—unlike other previous solutions which would be blownopen.

The tent may be illuminated with a light or lights for better viewing.The lighting makes it easier to see the food or other objects inside thetent. The light may be preferably placed at a top of the tent but may bepositioned in any manner to adequately illuminate an interior of thetent.

The tent, with or without the poles, may be packaged and may beunpackaged for portable convenience.

In some embodiments, the tent may be constructed and arranged oftensioned poles capable of popping up from a folded conformation or apackaged form. When popped up, they may be ready to use on a horizontalsurface such as a table.

A method of using the tent may also include the following: attachingpoles, each pole of any suitable size such as approximately 9 feet long,through the corresponding sleeves of the fabric or material of theenclosure, inserting pole ends into corresponding pole pockets,configuring the poles to give structure to the tent, and affixing thetent to a table or horizontal surface using the fasteners.

In some embodiments of this method, the poles may be capable assembly ordisassembly separate from the tent. For example, the poles may beassembled or disassembled through a shock-corded means by way of anelastic cord running through the center.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-6 , a tent formed by poles 22 and a canopy 26sit on a tabletop 32 protecting food 34 from insects and bugs.

The tent includes a first flap 10 covering an opening 14. The first flap10 may function as a door for the tent. The first flap 10 includes amale clip 18 and a female clip 20 to secure the first flap 10 to thecanopy 26. The first flap 10 further includes magnets 16 quickly andconveniently secure the first flap 10 to the canopy 26.

The tent also includes a second flap 12 near a top of the tent. Thesecond flap 12 may open and close, to enable bugs and insects trapped inthe tent to escape.

The poles 22 fit into sleeves 24 of the canopy 26. The poles 22 givestructure to the canopy 26. The canopy 26 is then affixed to thetabletop 32 by way of straps 30.

Lights 28 may be affixed to an interior of the tent.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates toexemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may bemade without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as setforth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A tent comprising: at least one pole operative to give structure to a canopy; fabric of the canopy attached to the at least one pole at at least one point; and a sealable hatch disposed within the fabric near a top of the canopy, operative releasing insects from the tent; wherein the tent is configured to be placed on a horizontal surface.
 2. The tent of claim 1, further comprising a light in an interior of the canopy.
 3. The tent of claim 1, further comprising fasteners to fasten the tent to the horizontal surface.
 4. The tent of claim 1, further comprising a sealable flap on the canopy configured to function as a door.
 5. The tent of claim 1, further wherein the sealable hatch is sealable by magnets.
 6. The tent of claim 1, wherein the sealable hatch is sealable by magnets.
 7. The tent of claim 1, further comprising a sleeve with a first gromet on a first end of the sleeve and a second gromet on a second end of the sleeve, the sleeve being affixed to an interior of the canopy wherein the at least one pole is inserted into the sleeve.
 8. The tent of claim 1, further comprising a pocket on an interior of the canopy, wherein an end of the pole is inserted into the pocket.
 9. The tent of claim 1, wherein the sealable hatch is approximately 2″×4″. 